Today, Alan van Capelle, CEO of Bend the Arc Jewish Action, issued the following statement on the Senate’s consideration of the Employee Non-Discrimination Act:
“Discrimination and intimidation at the workplace is the adult version of schoolyard bullying. It’s wrong, yet through years of inaction, we’ve allowed it to continue to this day. Firing someone based on their sexuality should be illegal. We urge the Senate to pass ENDA and make it so.
“Don’t let the gay marriage announcements in the New York Times fool you. Despite a series of heartening, recent victories at the local and federal level, we still have a long way to go to ensure that LGBT individuals experience the same equal rights that the rest of Americans take for granted. The Employee Non-Discrimination Act is an important and overdue piece of legislation that will move us toward greater equality, and it’s long past time that Congress make it law.
“The United States of America is still a country where people can be barred from a job or fired simply for their sexual orientation. The everyday practices that most Americans take for granted—hanging pictures of loved ones in their workspace, or sharing stories about family with their coworkers—could get gay, lesbian or trans workers fired, and they would have no legal recourse to hold their employer accountable for such prejudice and bigotry.
“Jews have experienced our fair share of discrimination and recall not too long ago when we, too, were barred from certain schools, jobs, and neighborhoods. We know from our own history that intolerance is a cancer on democracy. As Jews and as Americans we believe that all people were created equal, and they should be treated that way.”
As a proud ally in the national movement for LGBT rights, Bend the Arc has brought the Jewish community’s strong moral voice and clear support for marriage equality to bear in California, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey and across the nation.
